Mode of Inquiry Throughout Symposia Presentations

• In Event: 52.072 - Professional Development School Teacher Residents: Storied Journeys With Implications for Partnerships and Teacher Recruitment, Development, and Retention

Abstract

In order to explore the unique journeys, perspectives, and insights of PDS teacher-residents we engaged in collaborative narrative inquiry to address the following questions: What are the vocational and personal trajectories of these individuals? What are the experiences and practices of these teacher educators who have crossed institutional boundaries in PDS contexts? What are their perceptions of ways to improve teacher recruitment, pre-service and in-service teacher development, and collaborative inquiry, to renew and support the growth of faculty at both the P-12 and university level, and to support the academic achievement of all learners?

Narrative inquiry is well suited for this inquiry as it enables individuals to make evident their experiences (to themselves and others) through “collaboration between researcher and participants, over time, in a place or series of places, and in social interaction with milieus” (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000, p. 20). Positioning our narratives across time, locations of development, and in a range of social contexts and relationships is a fitting framework for consideration of the experiences and insights of PDS teacher resident boundary spanners.

Two residents (one who is currently a preservice resident and the other a first year teacher) will share the stories of their journey in thinking about pedagogy, student learning, engagement, and the lessons they have learned alongside of students, along with their next steps, vocational hopes, and recommendations for all PDS stakeholders. These narratives will be constructed based on data and engagements they have gathered from their experience across the P-12/university boundary as teacher candidates in university coursework and teacher residents working alongside of teachers and learners each day across an academic year. They will construct these narratives using their own data from written reflections, videos and field notes taken from their work alongside of learners in classrooms, coaching feedback, papers and assignments from coursework, and the action research projects each conducted during their residencies in the contexts of their classrooms. Other presentations provide context for these inquiries and situate them within the broader context of learning and teaching within PDS networks.

Author

• Teresa R. Fisher-Ari, Georgia State University